REDs fear losing customers due to high power tariffs

The REDs claim they are hardly generating any revenue due to the drastic increase in electricity tariffs, as consumers are now going off the grid, while some are investing in cheaper power-generating options such as solar power.

The Northern Regional Electricity Distributor (Nored) executive manager for technical services, Frans Petnen, says the high number of consumers going off the grid might lead to the closure of their offices, as the company cannot continue operating at a loss.

“Many of our customers are going off the grid due to the unaffordability of electricity. We have to be innovative as an industry to ensure that our customers are not just satisfied without electricity supply but also knowing that our electricity tariffs are also lowered to their satisfaction. We have to make sure that our tariffs are sustainable and we also want to look into our mega tariffs that are more expensive to our clients such as the transmission and the generation to be reduced. Otherwise, in the next 10 years, if tariffs keep escalating we are going to have a very few consumers on our grid,” he said.

He added that this is one of the main challenges the power supply industry faces that needs to addressed, because if it escalates further, it might lead to business closure.

Oshakati Premier Electric (OPE) chief executive officer Nelson Sheya says most customers have installed solar rooftops on their houses and business premises to generate their own power.

OPE has also set up its own power plant aimed at reduced electricity power supply for net metered customers.

“In an effort to diversify and increase our customer base, we have invested into renewable power supply. We have allowed our customers to set up solar rooftops on their premises, but we have also conducted a study to establish what would be the technical challenges if the net metered customers could be also to sustain those net metered customers,” he says.

The Central Northern Electricity Distributor (Cenored) chief executive officer, Robert Kahimise, says the issue of high electricity tariff regime needs to be addressed urgently because it is a huge burden to the power supply industry.

“Electricity has over the years become unaffordable. We need to change that regime of high electricity tariffs and look at more sustainable means of producing electricity. We as stakeholders need to address this challenge and get more innovative as an industry,” he says.

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.

The Namibian uses AI tools to assist with improved quality, accuracy and efficiency, while maintaining editorial oversight and journalistic integrity.